Staple magazine and feeding means



Aug. 21, 1962 H. G. ALLEN STAPLE MAGAZINE AND FEEDING MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

Filed June 21, 1961 I H. G. ALLEN 3,049,715 STAPLE MAGAZINE AND FEEDING MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 21, 1962 Filed June 21, 1961 JA A'A'A The present invention relates to improvements in a stapling tool, and more particularly to a magazine loading control device for such a tool.

It is a principal object of the invention to provide an improved easily operable device for setting the magazine feed alternatively to load staples onto the magazine guideway and alternatively to bias said loaded supply of staples into the path of the staple driving mechanism of the tool.

More specifically it is an object of the invention to provide a novel and improved arrangement of the magazine staple pusher device, the manual controller and an associated spring biasing means whereby said pusher is shifted between a retracted loading position and an advanced staple biasing position easily and at all times independently of the stress applied to the spring for biasing said staples into the driving area of the tool.

With these and other objects in view as may hereinafter appear the several features of the invention will be readily understood by one skilled in the art from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of a stapling tool embodying the several features of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional plan view on a line 2-2 of FIG. 1, the magazine feed mechanism being shown in a fully loaded and fully stressed position;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view in elevation taken on a line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view in side elevation taken on a line 44 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view in side elevation similar to FIG. 4, but with the magazine feed mechanism in a fully retracted loading position;

FIG. 6 is a detail sectional view similar to FIG. 5, but showing the pusher device being lowered into position during the magazine loading operation; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective View of the magazine showing a further step of the loading operation in which the manual controller is being advanced to the fully stressed operating position of FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive.

The stapling tool illustrated as embodying in a preferred form the several features of the invention comprises generally a frame 20 including a head portion 22 and a handle 24 housing a pneumatic staple driving mechanism, and a base 26 housing a staple magazine and feed mechanism for the tool.

The staple driving mechanism indicated in dotted lines in FiG. 1 comprises a piston 28 movable in a cylinder 30 arranged to be driven downwardly by the injection of air pressure through an inlet pipe 32 and an air inlet valve 34 which is operated by a finger control 36 and plunger 38. The piston is arranged to actuate a blade thin staple driver 46, the parts being returned upon completion of the staple driving stroke by means of ,a coiled spring 42. inasmuch as this mechanism is well known in the art and forms no part of the present invention, no further description thereof is necessary.

The staple magazine of the illustrated construction housed within the base 26 comprises a bar 50 which is supported from the bottom of the base and extends along the length thereof. The bar 50 is proportioned in cross section to engage thereon the usual U-shaped staples for which the machine is fitted.

3,49,7l5 Patented Aug. 21, 1962 The staple feeding mechanism associated with the magazine above described comprises a U-shaped pusher 52 which is fitted over the staple support guideway 50 to slide thereon, and is provided with an upwardly extending hook-shaped projection 54 and a terminal post 56 to which is attached an actuating spring hereinafter to be more fully described.

In the preferred form of the invention shown, the pusher 52 is operated by means of a manual controller 53 which takes the form of a transverse pin 60 adapted to ride in two identical tracks 62 formed one in each side wall of the base 26, housing the staple magazine mechanism. Two knobs 64, 66 are secured to the opposite ends of the pin 69 for convenient operation by the operator. The manual controller 58 is operatively connected with the pusher 52 by means of a long coiled tension spring 68 which is fastened at one end to the post 56 on the pusher and thence extends forwardly around an idler guide 70, thence rearwardly around a second idler guide 72 mounted at the rear end of the magazine cavity and thence forwardly to a point of attachment with the manual controller 58.

The operation of the staple feeding mechanism both for loading and for operation of the device will be described briefly as follows:

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 of the drawings the magazinc is fully loaded with staples 76 and is in operation. The manual controller 58 has been moved to its advanced position in which the pin 60 has been positioned in upwardly and rearwardly turned end portions 78 of the tracks 62. The pusher 52 is riding on the magazine bar 50 and is held against the end of the staple block 76 by the spring 68 which is at this time fully extended. As the staples are used up, pusher 52 is moved to the left.

In order to reload the magazine, the manual controller 58 is moved out of its locked position and then rearwardly carrying with it the pusher 52, the transverse pin 60 being now engaged with the hook projection 54 of the pusher. During this reloading operation it will be understood that no tensioning strain whatever is placed on the manual controller by virtue of the fact that the two ends of the coiled spring 68 secured respectively to the manual controller 58 and to the pusher 52 are held in fixed relation to each other and while the spring is permitted to roll freely around its idler guides 70 and 72. At the rear end of its traverse, the manual controller 58 is moved upwardly and then forwardly in the up-turned ends of tracks 80 to a loading position in which it is held by the forward pressure of the spring 68 as shown in FIG. 5. At the same time the pusher 52 is lifted off of its guideway, as provided by bar 50, to permit a new block of staples to be slid under the pusher on to the bar 5t), this position of parts being illustrated particularly in FIG. 5. A new block of staples having been inserted in the tool as shown in FIG. 6, the manual controller 58 is moved downwardly from its latched position causing the pusher 52 to be relocated on the bar 50 shown in FIG. 6. Finally the manual controller is moved forwardly along the length of the tracks 62 to the advanced position shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive thus causing the spring to be fully extended and thus causing the pusher to be biased against the rear end of the staple block 76.

The staple feed control mechanism above described has substantial advantages over constructions heretofore known in the :art in that a relatively strong spring staple feeding action may be employed without, however, any requirement for a corresponding effort on the part of the operator to reset the mechanism or to remove the pusher as a preliminary to reloading the tool. It will be noted that during the rearward movement of the manual controller 58 to remove the pusher from its operating position the two ends of the spring 68 are relatively fixed due to the fact that relative position of the manual controller and the pusher remain unchanged during this rearward movement. The spring is, therefore, merely rotated about its two idler supporting guides 70, 72, and has no eifect whatever to bias or resist the movement of the manual controller and associated parts. When a new block of staples has been placed in the machine, the manual controller 58 is again moved in a forward direction, moving with it pusher 52, until the pusher reaches the staple-engaging position of FIG. 6. Up to this point, again no resistance is offered to the movement of the forward control mechanism because of the several elements of the mechanism work as a unit. Consequently, even if the manual controller should be accidentally released during this part of the loading operation, there Will be no tendency for the pusher to be snapped against the block of staples, an occurrence which might damage one or more staples or which might jam the machine. During the final spring-loading movement of the mechanism in which the manual controller 58 is moved to its fully advanced position of FIG. 1, the manual controller is moved away from the pusher 52 thus loading the spring and applying the required tensioning strain against the staples.

- Furthermore, the construction of the present invention makes it possible to employ an unusually long spring for urging the staples into driving position, since the spring in its unstretched condition may be almost twice as long as the length of tracks 62, hence almost twice as long as the maximum length of the stick of staples fed into the tool. The use of such a long spring is advantageous in that the force exerted on the pusher is more nearly uniform during the feeding of the full complement of staples.

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein, it is not intended to limit the invention solely thereto, but to include all of the obvious variations and modifications within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

The invention having been described, what is claimed 1. 111 a stapling tool having a staple driving mechanism, the combination of a staple feed control mechanism which comprises with a staple guideway, a staple pusher overlying said guideway, and a tensioning device for said pusher comprising a manual controller, a track for said manual controller extending lengthwise of said guideway and having the ends thereof offset to provide a forward operating position and a rearward loading position of said manual controller, guides provided toward each end of said guideway, and a coiled tensioning spring passing around said guides at each end of said guideway, said spring having the ends thereof attached respectively to said manual controller and to said pusher.

2. A staple feed control mechanism according to claim 1 in which each end of said track for the manual controller is formed with an upward and thereafter a re verse extension providing in combination with said attached spring a forward looking operating position and an alternative rearward loading position of said manual controller.

3. A staple feed control mechanism according to claim 1, in which a hook element is provided with said pusher to be engaged by said manual controller for moving said pusher rearwardly with said manual controller.

4. A staple feed control mechanism for a stapling tool according to claim 1 in which said track is provided at each end thereof with upward and rearward extensions providing alternative operating and loading positions, said manual controller comprises a transverse rod, and said pusher is provided with a hook portion to be engaged by I said rod for moving said pusher with said manual controller rearwardly and thereafter upwardly to inoperative loading position.

5. In a stapling tool having a staple-driving mechanism, the combination of a staple feed control mechanism which comprises with a staple guideway, a staple pusher overlying said guideway, and a tensioning control device for said pusher comprising a manual controller including a transverse rod, a track for said manual controller extending lengthwise of said guideway and having the ends thereof formed with upward and thereafter reverse extensions providing a forward operative position, and a rearward loading position of said manual controller, a guide disposed toward the forward end of said guideway and a second guide disposed rearwardly of said guideway, but forwardly of said loading position, and a coiled tension spring stretched around said guides and having one end thereof attached to said manual controller and the other end thereof attached to said pusher, whereby said spring provides with said track extensions, a locking engagement of said manual controller in each of said alternative operating and loading positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

